Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

That is fair enough and that is the Minister's prerogative as Minister for Finance. I would never suggest that a Minister in any Department should be bound completely by the advice of officials but I asked the question given that it was the Minister's own position and he has made a massive U-turn in the space of 12 months. That would be welcome if he went the full hog. I will leave it at that.

I would like to point out to the Minister, who has obviously taken a special but selective interest in Berlin, that his attention should be focused a wee bit closer to home. Maybe he should read the Threshold reports and the Citizens Information Board report, which pointed out that the level of rental accommodation in this State has fallen by 63% in the last year. Every year since the Minister has been in Government, it has gone down. Someone can go down the road and get a room for €750 per month. They will probably think that is not bad but the only problem is they will be in the top bunk of a bunk bed that they are sharing with another person. That is the legacy of the policy that is driving up prices and it is at the core of this.

I want to ask the Minister another question on the credit. The credit will be available for four years of assessment. Is that correct? It will be for 2024 and 2025. I presume the same rules will apply and people will be able to avail of it for years and that it will backdated and will not have to be claimed in the given year.

The person will be able to claim the credit next year for next year. How early will a person be able to do that? Is it as soon as the person has paid rent to the value of the credit?